Jingle Bells
by EspoirDio
Summary: Also part of the 2015 Christmas Calendar. Niles gets a smartphone for Christmas and has trouble using it. Of course C.C. is at hand with some supportive words. :p


**A/N: FF keeps deleting the little arrow sign that goes along with the Christmas Tree symbol. It's meant to be there. lol**

Jingle Bells

Over the past few weeks the Sheffield household had undergone the changes typical for this time of year. Garlands had been wrapped around the staircase, mistletoe adorned nearly every doorway and C.C. had even spent a rather entertaining hour watching Niles trying to help manoeuvre an oversized Christmas tree into the living room. There had been whispers of presents and delicious smells had emanated from the kitchen but other than stealing a cookie or two, C.C. had managed to steer clear of the rest of the Christmas mayhem.

But now that Christmas Eve was upon them it was almost impossible to escape the cheer. Maxwell had long since adapted to his wife's attitude that Christmas was some kind of special event, designed to celebrate the goodness that was family and almost welcomed the constant interruptions, when said person found it vital to remind them how many hours were left until the big dinner.

At the one hour mark, C.C. put her paperwork away with a heavy sigh. She hadn't even put a dent in it and judging by the way her business partner had been staring into the air in a particularly dreamy fashion after each interruption, she doubted that he had accomplished much more.

She wondered – as she often did at this time of year – why she had even decided to come in; choosing to ignore, of course, that there might have been a part of her that actually enjoyed the shenanigans and the sense of family and love in the house.

Not that that feeling was strong enough to make her want to stay for dinner. The privacy of her penthouse would do just fine and with a party at her mother's coming up the following day, she'd likely need some time to recharge.

"I'll be off now, Maxwell, if you no longer need me?" she asked, rising to her feet and conveniently missing the look of relief that appeared on and then vanished from his face.

"Yes, of course, C.C." he replied jovially, "do enjoy your vacation."

"There won't be any children…it can only get better…" she muttered under her breath.

"I'm sorry?" he smiled.

"I'm sure I will." She said louder and made her way across the room. "See you in the new year."

She let his goodbyes be swallowed up by the sound of the door closing behind her. With coffee cup in one hand and her briefcase in the other, she headed towards the kitchen, side-stepping the Christmas tree and the rest of the family that came with it.

When she set foot into the dining room, the smell of duck and roasted vegetables and something else unidentifiable invaded her nostrils and almost made her reconsider her decision to leave but just then a clatter of sounds could be heard from the living room, followed by one of the nanny's particularly piercing laughs and she came back to her senses.

Pushing the door to the kitchen open with the ball of her foot, she found Niles hunched over the counter, focusing on a range of items of differing sizes.

"What's that?" she frowned in passing, discarding her mug in the sink.

"Coconut Latkes," he replied without looking up, "Mrs Sheffield required a light nosh."

"Do I look like I care about anything featured on Gluttony Magazine?"

"Well," he interrupted her with a grin, tearing his eyes off his project to look her up and down.

"I'm talking about your little collection there, Nigella."

The grin disappeared as quickly as it had come and was replaced by a frown. "A present from Mrs Sheffield."

"My God, did the poor woman raid her whole piggy bank for this? Now that she's married to Maxwell I'd expected something a little…snazzier."

"It's a smartphone. They're "cool" now, you know?" he informed her, obviously flattered to have received a gift like this.

"And you hope that by extension the same will be said about you?" she asked while a grin played around her lips that indicated that she was clearly enjoying herself. "Nanny Fine should've saved her cents."

"Isn't it time you got going?" he sighed. "Christmas doesn't steal itself."

"Alright, alright," she nodded, lifting up her hands, "but then you'll never know how to work that phone."

"All I have to do is figure out how to put these parts together. Children use these things, it's not rocket science." He muttered, carefully picking up one of the smaller pieces.

"But don't you remember being young all the way back in the day? Wasn't it you who had to explain to your grandfather why candles had become redundant?" she shrugged, pleased with herself. "Any four year-old can work that thing. But you're the grandpa now."

"Then why should I rely on a toothless witch like you to help me?" he countered, clearly irked by her last remark.

"Because I wasn't staring at my phone with a blank look on my face for hours. And because I know that if you're already stumped by this, you'll never figure out what to do with it once it's switched on. "My phone came with no buttons! Can I return it?" "Is Wi-Fi something to eat?""

She laughed gleefully and rubbed her hands together at the idea alone while in front of her, Niles threatened to explode.

"Oh just go…" he huffed, sweeping up the pieces and shoving them in his trouser pockets, "got more important things to do in anyway."

"Merry Christmas, Butler Boy," she called, pushing the door open once more, "here's hoping your next gift won't be a puzzle."

She watched him grind his teeth and then blew him a kiss and left before he could retaliate.

* * *

The situation, as funny as it had been, eventually slipped her mind and only resurfaced the next day when her cab pulled up in front of her mother's estate. The building loomed dark and foreboding as it had done since her childhood and for a split-second she wondered what it would be like at the Sheffield mansion instead, watching Niles struggling with his new toy.

While their exchange the previous evening had been rather entertaining, she knew that she'd only truly hit her stride when it was time to leave and now she longed to voice all the insults she hadn't got around to before. Unfortunately, just when she began to ponder if she should head back into the city and make up some excuse as to why she needed urgent access to the house, the front door was opened and her mother's butler waved her closer. Now there was no way out.

"Gustave," she nodded, putting on a smile.

"Miss Chastity," he offered in return and extended his hand for a polite handshake, "your mother saw you arrive, I'm afraid."

His apologetic tone which showed how well he knew her made her chuckle at least.

"Eagle-eyed even at her age." She sighed, slipped out of her coat and handed it to him.

"You're the last one to arrive. I'm sure she simply didn't want to be embarrassed in front of her guests."

"Then she shouldn't have invited me at all." C.C. muttered and followed him up a flight of stairs and into the drawing room.

There, a number of guests were already assembled. Her brother and sister stood on opposite ends. He was nursing a drink and looked as if he had suffered physical pain already while she was enthusiastically entertaining two young men C.C. had never seen before. Finally, at the head of the room and nearest to the window, her mother was seemingly deep in conversation with a couple C.C. recognised to be their neighbours, Mr and Mrs Ensfield, but every now and again she caught her eyes flickering across the space to assess what everyone was up to.

The minute she spotted her, she found a quick way of making her excuses and then loudly announced: "Ah Chastity, how good of you to finally join us."

"It was a long drive, mother." She replied through clenched teeth.

"You poor dear," Mrs Ensfield sighed dramatically while joining them, "you still had errands to take care of in the city today?"

"Not errands, no," she shook her head and freed her arm from the old woman's grasp, "but my business partner and I still had a few things to take care of. People want to be entertained, especially during the holidays."

"Ambitious and committed to the business, just like her father." Mrs Ensfield cooed but C.C. didn't miss the disapproving side-glance she gave her mother.

"You're right," she smiled sweetly, "maybe one day I'll learn how to sit back and enjoy everyone else's achievement as if they were my own."

And with a last look at the two of them, she made her way to the bar, poured a large glass of mulled wine and then joined her brother.

"Five minutes and you've already caused a scandal," he commented with a barely disguised grin, "aiming for a new record?"

"You always have to make your own entertainment at events like this." She replied dryly, lifted her drink in a mock-toast and then took a sip. "Now fill me in on what I have missed. Did Deirdre miscalculate and accidentally bring two of her lovers at once?"

"No," Noel chuckled, "and before you ask…one of them isn't for me either."

"Oh for God's sake," C.C. bristled, "this is getting more and more ridiculous. They're both young enough to be my…something or other."

"Not potential husbands then?" her brother probed innocently.

"Noel, if I ever reach that level of desperation, just put me out of my misery, alright?"

"But isn't Christmas even more special when you have someone to share it with?"

C.C. rolled her eyes and swirled the remainder of her drink around in her glass. "In mommy's case, a bottle of Bourbon usually did the trick just as well."

"And since she's always been your role model you're naturally following her example?" Noel asked teasingly.

"Just shut up," she muttered, finishing her drink in one go, "or I'll go and grab the lovely Mrs Ensfield so you two can continue discussing why you once again haven't brought a nice girl along and if you shouldn't have left that weird phase behind by now."

Just when her brother was about to reply, she felt her phone buzz in her purse. Pushing her empty glass into his hand, she opened the zipper and fished it out.

"Business or pleasure?" he asked, peering nosily towards the screen.

But C.C. remained silent and tapped the message that had been sent from an unknown number.

 _"Old and cool aren't mutually exclusive. Told you I'd make you eat your words, Babcock."_

For a second she stared at the screen a little perplexed before a smirk crossed her face.

"Neither, Noel," she answered absent-mindedly while her fingers hurriedly typed out a response.

 _"You used a manual! How grandfatherly of you!"_

"Speaking of business," she then said, reluctantly tearing her eyes away, "how are things at the University? Are you glad to have a break?"

"I wish I could have one," he chuckled, still wearing a puzzled expression, "but there are so many papers to grade, I doubt I'll be able to relax for long."

She nodded and tried to look and sound interested but was really internally counting how long it took Niles to reply.

In the end so much time passed without a message that C.C. gave up hope. She hadn't expected to feel so deflated but he had been her only chance at some form of entertainment that evening.

The conversation at the dinner table was so dreadfully boring that she lost count of the number of times she asked Gustave for a refill.

"Chastity, how rude of you."

She faintly registered her mother's voice scolding her but was about to shrug it off as the usual background noise that accompanied such visits, when she also noticed that her phone was buzzing.

"You're not a doctor or anyone else of such importance. You don't have to be on call."

"There could be an emergency with one of our plays," she replied disinterestedly, knowing that no kind of reason would be deemed acceptable enough.

"Why is it that Maxwell never receives these calls then?" B.B. challenged, while C.C. retrieved her phone and scanned the new message.

"Isn't Maxwell Sheffield married with children?" Mrs Ensfield intersected meaningfully but C.C. was too focused to notice.

Sooner or later they would find someone else to gossip about.

 _"The manual comes with the phone. It is designed to help."_

 _"Says every cheater in the history of cheating. And why did it take you so long to reply? Struggling to hit the right letters with your big fingers?"_

She had barely put her phone away and managed a bite from the tart Gustave had prepared, when a fresh buzz sounded.

A satisfied grin appeared on C.C.'s face at clearly having irked him.

 _"Unlike you boozing it up at your mother's, I am required to do some actual work."_

 _"And yet just now you managed a swift reply. Been practising in the meantime?"_

 _"It is straight forward enough once switched on. I don't need practice."_

She glanced up briefly to see where the conversation had got to and then typed a response.

 _"Oh really? I bet you haven't even figured out how to change your ringtone."_

 _"If you had ever used your manual you'd know that changing your ringtone is part of the basic instructions. If you must know, I have chosen Jingle Bells."_

 _"How awfully jolly of you,"_ she wrote back, _"trying to spread the festive cheer throughout the whole year?"_

 _"Jingle: a light ringing sound such as that made by metal objects being shaken together."_

 _"What's that?"_ she frowned, placing her finger on the rim of her plate so that her mother's butler wouldn't remove her half-eaten tart.

 _"Goggle's definition of a jingle."_

 _"Unlike you, I don't need a dictionary to tell me that. And perhaps you should try goggling different search engines to brush up on your internet lingo."_

 _"? A ringtone is like a jingle. Perhaps you should goggle "sense of humour"!"_

 _"It's GOOGLE, you boob!"_

She put her phone away and covered her mouth to hide the laugh that was threatening to burst out. She noticed her mother's stern looks which did nothing to sober her up and since Niles seemed too huffy to write for now, she busied herself finishing up her dessert.

Finally, her phone buzzed again.

 _"I know that. I just missed out an "o"."_

She shook her head and slid her finger down the display and then up again.

 _"Twice? ;-)"_

 _"What's that symbol?"_

She tried stifling another wave of laughter and ended up coughing instead which caused her mother's eyes to sweep over her yet again.

 _"No help from the Internet this time?"_

 _"Babcock!"_

She rolled her eyes at his impatience and quickly typed: _"Just tilt your phone."_

There was another pause in which she pondered sending him a snappy message in order to speed up their correspondence but in the end he answered before she had formulated it.

 _"Still not rid of that eye twitch, I see."_

She smiled in soft amusement to herself and only noticed when reaching for her glass, that everyone at the table was suddenly looking at her.

"What?" she frowned, sipping her drink as if nothing had happened.

"George was just telling us about his fabulous adventures in Martha's Vineyard." D.D. explained while snuggling up to one of the guy's arms.

"And?" C.C. frowned.

"That phone of yours is rather distracting," her sister concluded, her tone turning decidedly steelier.

"Oh, I am sorry," C.C. apologised, glancing under the table long enough to read Niles' follow-up message ( _"Can I send those, too?"_ ), "how annoying it must be to interrupt a story that's already so short."

Shocked gasps emanated from all corners of the table, except for Noel – who snorted into his drink – and George himself who took her comment in his stride and even managed a dashing smile.

"Oh you're funny! We'll talk more later, right?"

"If I can't avoid it…" she muttered and unlocked her screen again to answer Niles.

It didn't take long for her mother to salvage the conversation.

 _"You didn't want my help earlier. So why now? No emoji section in the manual?"_

 _":p ;-) :-0 :-)"_

 _"Niles…"_

 _"Call me old again, Babs. -_- :p :p ^-^"_

Her phone noisily buzzed against the edge of the table and once more all eyes were on her.

"Chastity, really!" her mother exclaimed exasperatedly, "We are trying to have a civilised conversation here. Can't you ask whoever it is to call you? That way you can excuse yourself for a moment and we can spend the rest of the evening in peace."

"I'm afraid," ( _":D :8 :x :0"_ ), "I'm afraid that's not possible."

Laughter bubbled up despite herself and extinguished even the mild annoyance she had felt at his childish behaviour.

 _"Oh no, I've lost you! :0 :0 :0"_

"Listen to me, Chastity," B.B. said, just about managing to keep her voice even, "you either switch off that damn sound now or I'll have Gustave confiscate the phone."

"I'm a grown woman!" C.C. scoffed.

"Then act like one!" B.B. bristled louder this time, her manicured nails gripping hard at the edge of the table.

A second later she seemed to remember that they weren't alone and put on a pleasant smile once more.

"Anyway, George dear, do continue your story. We're all fascinated."

Rolling her eyes, C.C. looked at her phone again and reluctantly switched off the sound.

 _"Talk like a normal person, you baboon!"_

 _"Aw…grumpy because I've proved you wrong?"_

 _"No!"_ She used her free hand to pinch the bridge of her nose. _"Thanks to you I've had to turn off vibrate."_

 _"You poor dear."_ It was fascinating to see how quickly he could respond when it came to insulting her. _"Was that the only chance for you to get some special attention this Christmas?"_

 _"You're a riot, Niles."_

She paused to look up when she felt fresh commotion around her and noticed that nearly everyone had risen from the table and seemed to be withdrawing to the living room once more.

"Liar," Noel whispered, linking arms with her and tugging her along.

"What?" she frowned, following him.

"Earlier I asked whether it was business or pleasure and you said neither."

"So? It is neither."

"That grin says otherwise." He pointed out gleefully and released her once they had taken their seats on the sofa.

The lamps had been switched off this time and all around them Christmas lights illuminated the room. The air smelled of pine tree and mulled wine and yet it felt sterile and cold, just the way she'd remembered the Christmases of her childhood.

 _"So you've switched on your phone, you've figured out how to send a text message, you've been online, you've changed your ringtone and you've sent emojis. But what about the more advanced things? Which apps are you using? Have you downloaded anything yet?"_

 _"Apes? What's that?"_

 _"Not apes, APPs!"_

She felt her brother nosily peering over her shoulder.

 _"I'm not blind. The word just suddenly appeared."_

 _"Like magic…"_

 _"Actually, it's called auto-correct."_

His comment made her groan which in turn caused Noel to raise a questioning eyebrow at her. For the time being she ignored it and quickly replied to Niles.

 _"I know that but it makes no sense. The "e" is somewhere else entirely which means you were going for the wrong word already…"_

 _"Smartass. So what's an APP?"_

 _"Application."_

 _"Aren't most things on this phone?"_

"He has a point," Noel chimed in, who was looking over her shoulder once more.

"How do you know it's a man?" C.C. replied smoothly, elbowing him back a bit.

"He sounds familiar," her brother shrugged, the illusion of neutrality destroyed by the grin that was tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"If you say so." She commented and focused on her phone.

 _"So?"_

 _"There is no "so", Babcock. Everything on this phone is an application. So I have several. You may call me an advanced master now."_

 _"What kind of title is that?"_

 _"One that annoys you and that's all that counts."_

 _"It's nice to hear that your lowly station has at least taught you how to value little triumphs."_

She put her phone aside long enough to accept a glass of champagne Gustave was offering but when she looked back at the screen he hadn't yet answered.

Feeling a little guilty – if also mostly because she feared to have lost her evening's entertainment once more – she sipped and waited and pondered how to restore the situation without sounding too foolish.

 _"I am on the Facebook now. But what does it do?"_

She slowly released her breath and sighed. He was avoiding her previous comment because he clearly wasn't all too pleased with it, but at least he was still talking to her.

 _"It's an app."_ She grinned to herself.

 _"There is that wit again. What's it for? Is it a dating site? Is it like tender?"_

C.C. laughed loudly and ignored her family's stares once more.

 _"How on earth do you know Tinder?!"_

 _"One hears things, Babcock."_

 _"At your age? Sorry to disappoint you. Facebook is just for regular social contacts."_

 _"Why would I be disappointed?"_

 _"True, any form of social interaction must be heaven-sent at this point."_

 _"I am not desperate!"_

 _"And yet you instantly created yourself a profile page at what you hoped to be a dating site. How did you even figure out how to set up an e-mail account?"_

 _"Miss Grace helped me."_

 _"Still a cheat! I'm removing the master title!"_

 _"You can't. Use your time for something useful instead and explain to me how I'm supposed to get a photo from my camera onto my phone."_

C.C. chuckled gleefully and eagerly typed: _"What do you think that thing at the back of your phone is?"_

There was another silence in which she emptied her glass of champagne and unfortunately made eye contact with George who seemed to take it as an invitation to join her. Noel, who was conveniently snatched away at that second by Mrs Ensfield mouthed an apology in her direction.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything." The young man smiled politely.

"Well, actually, I am rather busy." She replied, hoping that a clear display of her distaste would get the message across.

"In that case I'm sorry. I will promise to make it worth your while though."

She glanced longingly at her phone but there was no green flashing light of salvation in sight.

"What would you like to talk about?"

"Oh I really just want to get to know you better," he smiled, eyeing her up and down, "you seem like a fascinating woman."

"Not in the way you're thinking." She reminded him dryly.

"And such a great sense of humour." The smile remained on his face but his eyes had lost their shine. "Your mother says you've been looking to settle down for quite some time now."

"No," she chuckled disbelievingly, "my mother was talking about her own feelings there. I am content, actually."

"You make your own happiness?" he asked, scooting closer.

"So to speak," she shrugged, "I like my independence and I want to stay that way."

"Surely sometimes you must want a man around the house…"

She chuckled at the word he had used that stood in such strong contrast to his soft round face and boyish features.

He didn't seem put off by it and simply continued. "Someone who's there for you for certain things?"

"I'm afraid not every man is equipped for that." She explained, unlocking her phone again.

The green light had finally appeared.

"Is he equipped for it?" George asked, pointing at the screen where a close-up picture of half of Niles' face had appeared.

"Maybe," she replied absent-mindedly and then began to type.

 _"That is terrifying!"_

 _"I must've left the bloody zoom on. How do I get this off my Facebook?"_

 _"Consult the manual?"_

 _"Don't worry, I will. In the meantime, show me your - * since you haven't proven your skills yet at all."_

Seeing George raise his eyebrow in a mix between surprise and disgust, she laughed even harder.

 _"My God, Niles, aren't you forward? Shouldn't you flirt with me first? Take me out for drinks?"_

 _"It's a Christmas tree!"_

 _"I think you need to upgrade your manual. Looks like a weird triangle/stick formation to me."_

 _"Shows what you know!"_

 _"What do you want to see the Christmas tree for?"_ she asked, glad to see that George had lost interest and was now leaning back against the sofa to listen in on D.D.'s conversation.

 _"It's a good way to demonstrate you know how to work the camera and to show your superiority which I know you always enjoy."_

 _"My Christmas tree is superior to yours?"_

 _"Yes."_

 _"And that doesn't sound…dodgy to you?"_

 _"No, I just imagine your family going all out on this."_

 _"Money we have. Love not so much. It's a regular Christmas grotto here."_

 _"And as cold as the North Pole, I'm sure."_

She chuckled and gestured for her brother's attention. _"Pretty much."_

 _"And still there's no picture. I'm beginning to think you're avoiding it on purpose."_

 _"Hold your horses, Father Christmas, I'm working on it."_

"Just in time," Noel muttered when he appeared in front of her, having run his hand through his hair so much that he looked a little bit like a windswept owl, "Mrs Ensfield was starting to talk about her niece again."

"I can only imagine the horror," she remarked dryly and pushed her phone into his hands," take a photo!"

"Of what?"

"Of me and the Christmas tree." She pointed.

"For the man who's neither business nor pleasure?" he grinned and she rolled her eyes.

"Just do it or I'll call Mrs Ensfield over!"

Noel lifted his hands up in defeat, took his position and suddenly frowned. "How do I do this?"

"Oh for God's sake I've already set it up for you! Just press the button!"

"Which one?" he asked, the hint of annoyance growing in his tone.

"The big one in the middle!"

He gave her another dark look before following her instructions and letting the flash light up the room.

Ignoring the irritated sounds her mother was making, she accepted her phone back and sent the photo.

 _"It is huge! And you look like you're having the time of your life."_

 _"The alcohol makes it just about bearable."_

 _"The guy next to you seems to disagree. Is he your latest prey?"_

 _"Of sorts…"_

"I think I'll make my escape now," Noel said, looking around the room, "should I tell Gustave to call you a taxi as well?"

"God, yes!" she sighed thankfully, knowing that their mother was less likely to stop her if they left together.

"Alright," he chuckled and walked away to find the butler, giving her just enough time to glance back at her phone.

 _"?"_

 _"My mother invited him and another man for me and my sister in hopes that we'd hit it off."_

 _"And?"_

 _"Deirdre seems happy."_

 _"What about you?"_

 _"Sometimes a picture says more than a thousand words…."_

"You're leaving already?" her mother's shocked gasp filled the air and hastily made her pocket her phone.

B.B. had positioned herself between Noel and the escape route.

"So am I," C.C. voiced, quickly striding over to them.

"I suppose I can't force you to stay…" their mother sighed, looking around and noticing that everyone was staring at her.

"Not after you've already forced us to come and not if you don't want a scene." C.C. muttered and then clutched her hands, "Happy holidays, mother!"

Two pecks on the cheek and she turned to go, acknowledging the others with only a nod.

Noel caught up with her in the hall downstairs and accepted his coat from Gustave once he had helped her into hers.

"Your taxis are waiting," the butler smiled, giving their hands a warm squeeze, "it was lovely seeing you both again."

"Likewise, Gustave." C.C. smiled, stepping out into the cold evening air.

She shoved her hands into her pockets and made her way down the drive.

"So you're going back to your penthouse?" Noel asked, jogging behind her.

"Where else?" she replied, letting him open the gate once they got to it.

"The Sheffields?" he suggested innocently.

"Even I don't work that much," she chuckled, approaching one of the vehicles.

"I didn't mean that," he smiled, drawing her into an embrace before she could slip away, "you and Niles just seemed particularly inseparable today."

"If you say so," she answered non-committedly and gave his body a squeeze, "take care."

Noel shook his head with a soft chuckle and released her and a second later she sank into the warmth of the taxi. Giving the driver her address, she remained lost in thought for another while longer before realising that Niles had probably sent her another curious message by now.

And he didn't disappoint.

 _"Maybe she's concerned you're alone too much. Or she'd like to see you in better company._ " Followed by: _"Have you fallen asleep against the poor man's shoulders?"_

 _"I'm not like one of your dates ;)"_

 _"Where'd you go then? Did mommy momentarily confiscate the phone?"_

C.C. chuckled and looked out of the window, where the estate slowly disappeared.

 _"I was on my way out and had to say goodbye to everyone. And actually, she almost did earlier. And then I would've been really alone."_

Realising the implications of her last message, she stared at her phone in dismay. But it was too late to take it back now or to put a funny spin on it. The honesty of her confession remained right there in front of her.

 _"Remember that year you and Mr Sheffield and Miss Grace got trapped in a blizzard?"_

She frowned confused and chewed on her lip. _"What about it?"_

 _"Remember how Mr Sheffield and Miss Grace returned home first and you joined a few hours later?"_

A frown dug a groove between her eyebrows. _"Yes and?"_

 _"I was waiting for you to come back, too. I wanted to make sure you were really okay. And I only relaxed when you were finally in front of me."_

She didn't know where he was going with this, but his words triggered an odd feeling in her chest that was difficult to identify.

 _"I'm still not following."_

 _"You won't be alone and certainly not at Christmas. With all these joyful, happy people around here who else do I have to be miserable with but you?"_

She chuckled softly but instantly covered her mouth with her hand, as if their intimate moment could be broken if anyone else – even just the cab driver – witnessed it.

 _"We'll have a date next year then."_

 _"And then you'll show me your - *?"_

She laughed louder and more elatedly this time. _"If you play your cards right ;)"_

 _"How exciting! I better be a good boy all year then."_

 _"Not necessarily…"_

 _"Not sure if that's you or the alcohol talking so I better go to bed now before this gets out of hand."_

 _"Alright, Mr Kringle. Sleep well! Merry Christmas x"_

 _"Goodnight, Babcock. Don't think I didn't spot that extra letter!"_

She shook her head in amusement and briefly looked up at the skyline that was becoming visible in the distance.

 _"That's not just an extra letter."_

 _"No? What does it mean?"_

And with her grin broadening in delight she wrote: _"Goggle it ;)"_


End file.
